Great Basin Naturalist
Volume 46 | Number 1
Article 14
1-31-1986
Ecological differences of C3 and C4 plant species
from central Utah in habitats and mineral
composition
C. Morden
Texas A&M University, College Station
Jack D. Brotherson
Brigham Young University
Bruce N. Smith
Brigham Young University
Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn
Recommended Citation
Morden, C.; Brotherson, Jack D.; and Smith, Bruce N. (1986) "Ecological differences of C3 and C4 plant species from central Utah in
habitats and mineral composition," Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 46: No. 1, Article 14.
Available at: http://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol46/iss1/14
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ECOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES OF C, AND C, PLANT SPECIES FROM
CENTR\L UTAH IN HABITATS AND MINER.\L COMPOSITION
C.
M Olden
,
Jack D. Brotherson". and Bruce N. Smith"
—
Six study sites were established in each of three comniunit\ life fonn t>pes grass, forb. and shrub
subdomimmts either Cj and or C4 plants. Soil and vegetation samples were anal\"zed foi
phosphorus,
magnesium, calcium, potassium, sodium, zinc. iron, copper, and manganese. Discrimi
total nitrogen,
nant analysis and analysis of Viiriance statistics were used to evaluate differences in mineral content of soils and plan
tissues. Cj plants in all study sites assimilated higher concentrations of potassium, iron, and calcium than did C3 plants
Forbs in all sites contained the highest concentrations of minerals, followed bv shrubs and grasses.
Abstr.\CT.
containing as dominants or
Studies hii\e shown that 40*^-50% of the
leiif protein in C3 species consists of
sokible
RUBPcase, whereas in C4 species onl\ about
was RUBPcase \Blenkinsop and
5'~(--20'~f
Dale 1974). Based on
this
evidence.
Brown
^1978) suggested that C4 species should re-
quire less nitrogen than do Cj species. Several
studies
have
supported
^Christie 1979. Hallock et
this
id.
h>pothesis
19&5. ^^'ilson
and Ha\dock 1971. Wilson 1975\ It has also
been shown that C4 species require small
amounts of sodium for growth ^Browiiell and
Crossland 1972V although these studies were
done on species specificalK- adapted to different environments isaline\s. nonsiiline\ It was
the purpose of this stud> to in\ estigate the
mineral relationships of C3 and C^ plant species that grow in natural communities of compai-able environmental condition to assess
whether ecological differences in mineral uptake do exist.
Materials and Methods
Stud\ .\rea
sites were established in
communities bordering L'tah Lake.
Utali Count) Utah, at approximately 40^10'
N, 11^50'
vFig. l\ Elevations ranged li-om
1,36S to L40S m above sea level, with a mean
of 1.377 m. Six study sites were established in
each of six communit>" t\pes. Communities
were selected because of the presence of the
species Sporobolus airoides. PuccincUia nut-
Thirty-six stud>
plant
.
W
Fig.
1.
.\
map
of Utah Lake showing the locations
Communities shown corr
spond to P = PuccincUia. Sp = Sporobolus. .\ = Atriphi
=
=
K Kochia. G Greasewood and Sh = Shadseale.
stud> sites ;iround the lake.
Athplcx patula. Kocliia scoparu
and Athplcx cot
These species represent three lii
fei-tifolia
fomis ^grass, forb, and shrub", with each li
talliana.
Sarcobatits vcrmicuhitus
.
Trjc> Herbarium. Department of Range Science'. To\as.\ «!t .\| Lui\ersit>. l\>llev;e Station. Tevos ..b-ki.
-Department of Botany and Range Science. Briehani Young Iniv^ratx. -135 WIDE. Pro\x). I'tah S46Qi.
140
.
Januan" 1986
Table
and the
1.
1.
sites
141
:
Species along with their mean cover values and life form designation.
form t\pe (i.e. g = grass; f = forb; s = shrub).
letters indicate life
C4 grass
MORDEN ET AL. Pl\NT ECOLOGY
.
An
asterisk i*^
idicates
C^ species.
Great Basin Natur.\list
142
Vol. 46, No.
1
Samples were pooled and then anal\ zed
(Bouyoucos 1951), pH, soluble
salts, and mineral content. The hydrogen ion
concentration was measured with a glass electrode pH meter. Total soluble salts were determined with a Beckman electrical conducter.
for texture
tivity bridge.
A paste consisting of a 1:1 g/v soil
water (distilled) mixture was used in determining pH and soluble salts.
Vegetation samples were obtained by taking selected clippings of herbaceous material
from the C3 species {Sporobolus airoidcs,
Kochia scoparia, and Atriplex confci-tifolia)
and the C4 species {Puccinellia nuttalliana,
Atriplex patula, and Sarcobatus venniculato
tus) within the stud\ plots. Soil
tion
and vegeta-
samples (new growth leaves) were ana-
lyzed for total nitrogen, magnesium, calcium,
potassium, sodium (Hesse 1971), zinc, iron,
Fig. 2.
grasses
Discriminant analysis for
83% were
groups,
(1),
forbs
soil
classified correctly.
(2),
and shrubs
minerals.
Numbers
Of the
refer to
(3).
copper, and manganese (Lindsa\' and Norvell,
1969). Discriminant analysis (Klecka 1975)
and anaK'sis of variance (Ott 1977) were used
to statistically
determine differences in minCj and C4 species and
eral content betsveen
their habitats.
Discriminant analyses were conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) computer program (Klecka
1975). This technique distinguishes statisticalK'
between two or more groups
of
stands on
the basis of discriminating variables. The
groups and variables are selected by the re-
measured can be used
method), or a stepwise
method can be used to reduce the number of
variables to those that provide the best dissearcher. All variables
in the analysis (direct
among the groups. In this
study both the direct and the Wilks stepwise
methods were used. The Wilks method uses
the overall multivariate F ratio to test for variable differences. It selects the variables independently for entry into the analysis based on
the importance of their discriminating power.
The analysis procedure combines the discriminating variables to create discriminant
frinctions designed to provide maximum separation among the groups pre\'iousl\' specified
(life forms and C3 and C4 photosynthetic
t\^es). The discriminant program determines
the relative percentage of the total \ariation in
the discriminating variables that is accounted
for in each function. It also determines the
relative importance of each variable used to
criminating power
Fig. 3.
Discriminant analysis for
soil
chemistry
an(
Of the groups, 78% were classified correctly
Numbers refer to grasses (1), forbs (2) and shrubs(3).
texture.
create the discriminant frinctions. This infer
mation can be used to identify the variable;
having the greatest influence on the outconM
of the analysis.
A graphic representation of the results o
discriminant analysis is possible if the discrim
inant functions are viewed as axes in geomet
ric space. A plot of stands based on the twc
most important functions locates the stands ir
I
MORDEN ET AL. PLANT ECOLOGY
[anuary 1986
143
:
and soil samples within each life form (grasses,
and shrubs) were made. The percent of
grouped cases classified correctly were 83%
for the soil materials (Fig. 2) and 78% for soil
chemistry and texture (Fig. 3), whereas the
forbs,
mineral content of the vegetation classified
the groups 100% correctly (Fig. 4). This indicates that habitat differences in soil mineral
chemistrv' and texture influence the life form
type that dominates a site and that differential
partitioning of the minerals by the plants occurs to a great extent. The soil, of course, may
be modified by the plants growing in it.
Results of analysis of variance and New-
also
man-Kuel tests for parameters of soil and vegetation mineral content are given in Tables 2
and 3. Analysis of soil mineral content showed
differences between means for
manganese, sodium, and soluble salts. Analy-
significant
Fig. 4.
Of
Numbers
erals.
Discriminant analysis for vegetation (leaf) minthe groups, 100% were classified correctly.
refer to grasses (1), forbs (2), and shrubs (3).
two-dimer<;ional space in such a
relationships
Such
among
way
that the
the groups can be visual-
a graphic representation
especially important for assessing the amount of
separation between one group and another as
well as the degree of group overlap.
ized.
is
sis of vegetation mineral content showed differences between life forms in nitrogen, phos-
phorus, zinc, manganese, copper,
sium, potassium, and sodium.
magne-
C3 and C4 species were 78% correctly classiby minerals for both soil and vegetation
samples (Tables 2 and 3). Stem and leaf plots
of the discriminant analyses based on soil and
fied
vegetation mineral content are given in Figures 5 and 6, respectively.
Results of the analysis of variance between
Results
Results of cover analysis for our study sites
given in Table 1. Only those species showng 1% or more of the total cover are included.
[n the grass- and forb-dominated communi3
ties,
Sporobolus airoides, and Kochia sco-
*paria provided over half the total cover.
The
shrub communities, however, were dominated in their understory by the invader species Bromus tectorum L. and Ranunculus testiculatus Cranz.
Their presence in the
understory is indicative of site disturbance as
a
result of grazing.
Hydrogen
:ies.
Tom
All soils
showed no sigbetween the communi-
ion concentration
nificant diflFerences
were
basic,
pH
showed no
between communities,
of them being clay to silty clay loams. Solu-
sle salts
were highest
in the grass
communi-
and lowest in the shrub communities.
Two-dimensional plots of discriminant
:ies
inalysis of the
within the plant tissue is not significantly
Calcium and potassium showed no
significant differences in concentration in soils
but were significantly different in the plant
als
different.
tissues of C3 and C4 species. Plant:soil ratios
were computed for each mineral. Mean differences in iron and sodium assimilation exist
between C3 and C4 species. Although trends
existed for other elements, differences be-
tween C3 and C4 species were not
significant.
ranging
8.1 to 8.7. Soil texture also
Jignificant diflFerences
ill
with a
C3 and C4 species are shown in Table 4. Iron
and manganese are significantly (p < .05)
higher in concentrations in the soils of C3dominated species than of C4-dominated species. However, concentration of these miner-
mineral content of vegetation
Discussion
Brown (1978) suggested that diffierences in
nitrogen use between photosynthetic types
(C3 vs. C4) would hold for grasses, but he was
not sure of the results that might be obtained
with respect to other life forms. It appears
Great Basin Natukaijst
144
Tablk 2.
Vol. 46, No.
Differcnct's in the mineral concentration.s of .soils a.ssociated with the Hie forms as
varianee and Newman-Keiil tests.
Means with
determined by analysis of
similar letters following indicate no si^niheant dilferenees for those
means. Those with different letters indieate significant differences.
Nntrient concentrations
Mineral
Grasses
1
in life
form
soils
January 1986
MORDEN ETAL.; PLANT ECOLOGY
145
Great B.\sinX.\tur.\list
146
T.\BLE
4.
Summan
plant:soil ratios for
of mineral concentrations for vegetation and
C3 and C4 plants across
asterisk (*) next to the
means
values.
all
36 study
One asterisk
soil data.
sites. Significant
indicates p
< 0.05;
mg Kg
Vol. 46, No.
Means
are for \egetation.
differences are indicated
hvo
asterisks indicate
p
<
b\-
soil,
1
and
the presence of an
0.01.
MORDEN ET AL.: PLANT ECOLOGY
Januan- 1986
had shghtly higher mean
their tissues and higher
plantisoil ratios than the C4 species. The C3 species also flowered one to two months earlier in
the summer, when moisture conditions in the
hahitat were more conduci\ e to their growth.
though grasses grew in soils with high conSpecies of this study
sodium
levels of
in
centrations of soluble salts (Table
their tissue
2),
concentrations of sodium and potassium (Table
3) were much lower than eithf^^r forbs or shrubs.
Although many grasses adapted to saline envi-
ronments possess
Hansen
1974,
et
glands (Liphschitz et
salt
al.
Hana and Sporobohis airoides do not and as a
'esult must restrict the amount of sodium and
ootassium entering their tissues. On the other
land, the shrubs
sess
and forbs of this study do pos-
glands or
salt
R. 19.59.
A canopy-coverage method of veg
etational analysis.
Northwest
Donahue, R L R VV Miller, J
an introduction to
Soils,
Prentice-Hall,
Hallock,
D L
.
R,
become succulent (Luttge
and thus are able to tolerate higher quantises of sodium and potassium in their tissues.
Both growth form and photosynthetic t\pe
ihowed habitat differences relative to mineral
1971)
33:43-46.
Sci.
C
Schicklumna. 1977
soils and plant growth
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H
Brown, and R E Blaser, 1965
Relative yield and composition of Ky. 31 fescue
and coastal bermudagrass at four nitrogen levels
Agron. J. 57:539-542.
Hesse, P R, 1971. Textbook of
soil
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D J P Dayanandan, P B
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D
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its
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iptake.
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